Trey Brokaw - Cross Country Coach - University of Akron Athletics

Trey Brokaw

Title:
Women's Distance and Cross Country Coach
Email:
tbrokaw@uakron.edu
Phone:
(309) 335-3895

Trey Brokaw joined the Akron track and field staff in August of 2018, and the 2020-21 season marks his third as head women’s cross country coach, assistant track and field coach, and recruiting coordinator at the University of Akron.

Since his arrival, the women’s middle distance and distance group has improved significantly highlighted on the track by a pair of NCAA national qualifiers, five individual or relay Mid-American Conference titles, and four MAC team titles.

Most notably, Brokaw guided Mackenzie Andrews, who broke five Akron school records in 2019; 4:35.63 in the mile, 9:28.39 in the 3000, 4:20.19 in the 1,500, 10:01.73 in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, and anchoring a distance medley relay that established a school-record time.

Having previously only finished as high as third place, Andrews went undefeated against league competition in 2019, scoring 22.5 points, en route to being selected as Most Valuable Performer at the 2019 MAC Indoor Championships. Her 4:35.63 mile was a conference record and also set the mile record at the Kent State indoor track and field facility.

Outdoors, Andrews went on to win a Texas Relays title in the women’s invitational 1,500. She is currently a top ranked steeplechaser in her home country, Australia, after only a few race attempts at the new event she has her eyes set on the 2021 Tokyo Olympics; Andrews continues to train under the guidance of Brokaw and his post-collegiate training group.

In cross country, Brokaw has led an equally strong resurgence with that phase of the program.

This past fall, the Akron women’s squad had their best team finish at the MAC Championships since 2009. Haley Hess, Mackenzie Andrews, and Lindsey Scarton earned All-MAC individual honors after placing sixth, seventh, and eighth, respectively. As freshmen, the trio placed 50th, 65th, and 70th overall at the MAC Championships.

This past fall also marked the highest Akron team finish since 2008 at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional Championships. Andrews finished 28th overall individually at the regional meet coming up just short of individually qualifying for the NCAA National Cross Country Championships. This was tremendous development considering Andrews didn’t make the travel squad for the NCAA Regional Championship meet as a freshman.

Brokaw came to the University of Akron after serving as recruiting coordinator for the cross country and track and field programs at the University of Nebraska. He helped solidify one of the strongest signing classes in program history in 2018 with over 40 athletes from three different continents. Through his extensive experience recruiting on the international level, Brokaw spearheaded efforts to attract world-class talent to Nebraska.

His top signee, George Kusche of South Africa, was a 2018 and 2019 NCAA qualifier in cross country; Nebraska’s first NCAA qualifier in nearly a decade. He was also named the 2018 Big Ten Freshman of the Year in cross country for his third-place finish at the Big Ten Championships. On the track, Kusche set the Nebraska school records in the mile, 3:57.93, and the 3000, 7:50.93. He qualified for the 2019 outdoor and 2020 indoor NCAA Championships in the 1,500, mile, and 3,000 meters.

Before his time at Nebraska, Brokaw was an assistant coach, recruiting coordinator, and director of operations for the University of Northern Iowa. His athletes won seven Missouri Valley Conference individual titles and set eight school records. With his contributions the women’s cross country team won their first conference championship title in 16 years and the men’s track and field team won their first conference title in a decade. While at UNI, Brokaw coached Alexina Wilson, a 2016 Drake Relays Champion and 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials qualifier in the 3,000-meter steeplechase.

Before arriving at Northern Iowa, Brokaw started his coaching career as an assistant for his alma mater, Emporia State University in Emporia, Kansas. As an athlete at Emporia State, Brokaw was team captain and part of the squad that placed fifth at the Division II Indoor National Championships in 2011. That team followed up their fifth-place finish indoors with a fourth-place finish at the Division II Outdoor National Championships.

Brokaw, originally from Illinois, is engaged to Stephanie Brown. Brown was a 10-time NCAA National qualifier at the University of Arkansas and won an NCAA title in 2014 for the Razorbacks. Eyeing the 2021 Olympics, Brown still trains professionally as a middle-distance runner with personal bests of 2:01.71 in the 800 and 4:06.71 in the 1,500.

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